Ensuring access to lifesaving technologies during the pandemic

Cambridge, Mass. - April 7, 2020 – Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Stanford University have established and committed to a set of technology licensing principles that will incentivize and allow for the most broad and equitable access to university innovations during the global SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

The joint COVID-19 Technology Access Framework sets a model by which critically important technologies that may help prevent, diagnose, or treat COVID-19 infections may be deployed for the greatest public benefit without delay.

In particular, the Framework’s guidelines provide for non-exclusive, royalty-free licensing of intellectual property rights for most types of technologies during the pandemic and for a short period afterward. Licensees commercializing these urgently needed innovations will be expected to distribute the resulting products as widely as possible and at a low cost that allows broad accessibility.

“The coronavirus pandemic demands that institutions and companies worldwide step up to answer the call for solutions that may spare lives, without delay. By our commitment to the COVID-19 Technology Access Framework, we are taking steps to incentivize the mobilization of lifesaving innovations and resources during a time of urgent need,” said Isaac T. Kohlberg, Harvard’s Senior Associate Provost and Chief Technology Development Officer. “The Framework extends Harvard’s longstanding commitments to responsible licensing practices that ensure equitable global access to essential medical technologies, for the public good.”

The institutions’ commitments are formally defined by the statement that follows:

COVID-19 Technology Access Framework

We strongly believe that while intellectual property rights can often serve to incentivize the creation of new products, such rights should not become a barrier to addressing widespread, urgent and essential health-related needs. To address the global COVID-19 pandemic, we are each implementing technology transfer strategies to allow for and incentivize rapid utilization of our available technologies that may be useful for preventing, diagnosing and treating COVID-19 infection during the pandemic. To achieve our common goal, we each individually commit to the following guidelines:

We are committed to implementing COVID-19 patenting and licensing strategies that are consistent with our goal of facilitating rapid global access. For most types of technologies, this includes the use of rapidly executable non-exclusive royalty-free licenses to intellectual property rights that we have the right to license, for the purpose of making and distributing products to prevent, diagnose and treat COVID-19 infection during the pandemic and for a short period thereafter. In return for these royalty-free licenses, we are asking the licensees for a commitment to distribute the resulting products as widely as possible and at a low cost that allows broad accessibility during the term of the license.

We are committed to making vigorous efforts to achieve alignment among all stakeholders in our intellectual property, including research sponsors, to facilitate broad and rapid access to technologies that have been requested to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are committed to making any technology transfer transactions related to addressing the COVID-19 pandemic our first priority, and to minimizing any associated administrative burdens.

The initial signatories include:

Harvard University Massachusetts Institute of Technology Stanford University